Purdue football coach’s salary, contract details

November 23, 2024 Vaseline blog 0

Purdue football coach’s salary, contract details

Purdue football’s 2024 season has been disastrous, among a slew of other unflattering adjectives.

Entering their game Saturday at Michigan State, the Boilermakers are 1-9 and have yet to defeat an FBS opponent. Their losses have come by an average of 29.6 points per game, with all but two of those defeats decided by at least 17 points. Along with Kent State, they’re one of just two teams that rank among the bottom six (of a possible 134) FBS squads in both scoring offense and scoring defense.

By almost any measure, the season has been one of the worst in the program’s 132-year history.

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Those struggles have raised larger questions and concerns that extend to coach Ryan Walters.

After Jeff Brohm left for Louisville after the 2022 season, Walters was hired to take over a Purdue program that had made a bowl in four of the previous six seasons and was most recently coming off his first-ever appearance in the Big Ten championship game. Following a 4-8 season debut under Walters, the Boilermakers have continued a backslide into this season and have largely looked non-competitive.

There’s only so much to look forward to in the future, as well. Walters’ 2025 recruiting class ranks 81st nationally and last in the Big Ten, according to 247Sports, putting it 20 spots behind its next-closest conference mate (Northwestern).

Should Purdue opt to move on from Walters after his second season, what would it cost? Here’s what you need to know about Walters’ contract, including its buyout:

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Ryan Walters Purdue contract details

  • Contract length: Five years
  • Contract value: $20 million

When Purdue hired Walters in December 2022, it was bringing in a relatively unproven commodity. The then-36 year old had impressed in two seasons as Illinois’ defensive coordinator β€” including leading the FBS’ leading scoring defense in 2022 β€” but he had no head-coaching experience.

Because of that, the Boilermakers didn’t have to hand out a particularly lavish contract.

Walters’ total pay of $4.05 million, according to the USA TODAY Coaching Salary database, ranks him second-to-last among coaches at Big Ten public schools, ahead of only first-year UCLA head coach DeShaun Foster.

Ryan Walters buyout

According to the terms of his contract, Walters is owed 75% of his remaining base compensation if he’s fired without cause β€” meaning for his team’s on-field struggles rather than something that could trigger a firing with cause, like NCAA violations or some kind of off-field scandal.

If Walters is fired by Purdue without cause by Dec. 1, he would be owed $9,590,625. He’s set to earn $4.1 million in 2025, $4.15 million in 2026 and $4.2 million in 2027, which are the final three full years remaining on his deal. He would also be owed his remaining 2024 salary, which is $253,125 for the month of December.

Walters would be paid out in equal monthly installments for the remainder of his contract, which runs through Dec. 1, 2027.

It’s a more manageable buyout than the $15.5 million Indiana agreed to pay Tom Allen after he was fired following the 2023 season. Still, there’s at least some question of whether Purdue would be willing to invest so much to get rid of a football coach after two seasons when the school (along with others across the country) is preparing for the looming possibility of having to pay more than $20 million a year as part of a revenue-sharing arrangement with athletes.

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Ryan Walters record

Walters’ head-coaching resume is relatively thin, as he’s in just his second year leading an FBS program.

That sample size, small as it is, has been underwhelming. With two games remaining in Purdue’s 2024 season, Walters has an overall career record of 5-17, including a 3-13 mark in Big Ten play. In the two seasons before Walters’ arrival, the Boilermakers went 17-10 overall and 12-7 in conference games.

Here’s Walters’ year-by-year record:

  • 2023: 4-8 (3-6)
  • 2024: 1-9 (0-7)
  • Overall: 5-17 (3-13)